Geopolitics Basics
The basics of this world is that at its core, it is essentially like our own world- the technology level is the same, many of the same cultures and cultural icons exist in this world as well, much of the same geography, flora and fauna, scientific knowledge, economic practices, etc.- but in many other areas this world is different. In Vicendum, there are a few core differences: 1) The Roman Empire never fell, be it in A.D. 476 or 1453, and continues as an entity into the modern day. 2) The Cold War claimed not just the Soviet Union but the United States of America as well. 3) Rome is the world's predominant power, with its empire having expansive territories worldwide and generating over a third of the world's economic output. Primarily opposing Rome is the Virtue Federation, an alliance of hundreds of different polities that effectively serves as Vicendum's "United Nations". 4) Rome and Virtue represent the "political mainstream" of Vicendum, and are primarily opposed to each other on operational grounds. The Romans are known for their pragmatic, logical approach, where fairness is key but not everyone gets what they want or need. Virtue is known for their moralistic, reactionary response to politics, meaning it places a much higher degree on ethics and compassion, although it often falls victim to regionalism and identity politics as a result. 5) Outside of the political mainstream are several blocs that represent Vicendum's idealistic side. Some are aligned in some way to either Rome or Virtue but many of the reasons for this alignment stem from political necessity rather than a natural connection. On one side is a grouping of several political movements known collectively as "personality politics". The personality politics front is dominated by the minoritarian-leaning states led by led by the alt-left bloc (the most prominent of states being African powerhouses Casara), opposed by the majoritarian-leaning bloc led by Birea, Oman and Khorsun, the three informally aligned and the latter two formally allied as the Human Rights Alliance. On another front are the Mesopotamianists, who represent an extreme view of modern classicism, in that they outright reject democracy in favour of "god emperors". They are led by Assyrian Empress Anatu and the Meridian Empire in a bloc concentrated around Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, the central Americas and the Congo. 6) The Roman world is divided into three different blocs- the Republic, the core Roman territories administered by the Senate, the Imperium, or the provinces administered directly by representatives of the Caesar, and the Commonwealth, self-governing states for whom the Caesar is the head of state. They are the chief promoters of modern classicism, a cultural philosophy that marries ancient ways of thinking with modern sensibilities, thus making it a very pragmatic mindset. The Roman world is very progressive and adaptable, especially within political and cultural circles, with a strong sense of national communalism and a staunch defence of personal freedoms, liberties and human rights. Their society is often held as the "paragon" for societies within Vicendum, leading to a strong sense of arrogance among Romans believing they are culturally superior to the rest of the world. Because of its economic strength and its ability to be self-sufficient, the Roman State largely pursues isolationist policies, although its status as the world's No. 1 power means it cannot actually ignore the wider world, as much as they might like to. Despite its isolationism, the Romans have several allies, Scotland and Morocco. 7) The Virtue Federation is headlined by England (the successor to the United Kingdom and the world's No. 2 power behind Rome), Byzantium (de jure the Eastern half of the Roman Empire but de facto an independent state), Casara (Africa's main superpower), Carthage, Bactria and the Mongol Khanate (the No. 3 power in the world). Although Virtue stresses within its charter to promote human rights and liberties, Virtual society is noted for being preferring adherence to family values, especially monogamy and heteronormativity, with the strident proliferation of capitalism and individual determinism. Many of its constituent societies are highly nationalistic and being extremely defensive of their country's cultural institutions, with some nations even resorting to outright xenophobia. This de facto Virtual culture is one Virtue as an organization is known for defending, along with the interests of the main powers within Virtue, the "Family"- England, Byzantium, Birea, Bactria and the Mongols. 8) North America is now a continent full of several dozen small nation-states, some influential on the global stage in their own right (Carolina, Ontario and New York), some being faux collections of states (the Canadian Federation and the Pueblan Confederacy), with others allied either to Rome or Virtue. Several attempts have been made to restore a unified continent, but all have failed. 9) Based in North America is The Virus, the main actors in Vicendum's "criminal underground". It has its prominence on social media, and technically has no central authority or even any time of organization, as all one needs to do in order to be a member is say they are acting in its name. That said, the vast majority of those aligned to The Virus take their guidance from one man, Danforth Grayson, who is the movement's spokesman and is seen as their de facto leader. Grayson is an outspoken advocate for the marginalized in the world, and many who identify with The Virus act with the intentions of improving the marginalized's lot. In addition to committing crimes for political or social purposes, The Virus' members also assist each other in evading authorities, with a dedicated subsection devoted to coming up with ideas for "unsolvable" crimes, which a good many of their crimes wind up being. Thus, the group has been declared a "terrorist organization" by most world governments though they have difficulty obtaining their capture. 10) The Irish diaspora are the world's highest profile ethnic minority group. They are not a majority in any country they are present in and are routinely exploited by their adopted country as the collapse of order in Ireland has left them desperate. To fight back against their struggles, numerous advocacy groups have emerged to represent the Irish, including the peaceful Ceartas in Eirinn ("Justice in Ireland") and the terrorist groups Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Eirinn Go Brach (EGB). 11) Birea is the epicentre of the world's main religious antagonists, the Nathanites, being a country that practices the strictest definition of the religion. Nathanism at its core is about the subservience of women in favour of men, as well as the outright practice of violent means to forcibly convert or destroy what it deems are heresies. Birea is thus a state sponsor of the world's largest terrorist organization, the Soldiers of the Lord. 12) The Nathanites are opposed by the Petrine Catholic Church, from which the Nathanites arose after having conflicts with it. Although the Petrines have developed more progressive policies (mostly in response to Nathanism), the Petrines are relatively moderate from a worldwide perspective, being to the right of the Roman political spectrum and to the left of the Nathanites, who are much more radical. The Petrines thus share a lot of similar views with Virtue and culturally the Petrines are closer aligned with Virtue, but, due to the fact that the office of the Church's supreme leader, the Petrine Pontiff (or simply "the Pope") is technically a Roman office (though in practice the Romans have exercised no authority over the Papacy in centuries) as well as the fact the Pope makes his official residence in Rome itself, the Petrines are seen as politically aligned with Rome. 13) A state with special status in the story is Khorsun. They are members of Virtue but this is only a matter of convenience, since by all practical terms, Khorsun are a rogue state. They are a regional power with aspirations of becoming a global power. Their history has ties with the ancient Phoenicians, who founded the ancient city of Kusan in what is now modern-day Dakar in Senegal. Khorsun thus see the northern half of Africa as their rightful sphere of influence, and, as a result of this, are sworn enemies of the Romans. Casara, due to its position as the pre-eminent power in Western Africa, as well as its ideological differences with Khorsun (Casara favouring non-violence and equality, while Khorsun is a violent state that actively practices apartheid) have also come under the crosshairs of the Khorsunis. 14) Another state with special status is the Kingdom of the Vandals. A mainstay within the western Mediterranean world for centuries, the last vestige of ancient Germanic culture refuses alliances with anyone, but they do maintain relations around the world. As strong patrons of the arts, the Vandals are known for their creative way of doing things (even within government affairs) as well as their unconventional way of life. Nowhere is this more clear than in the Vandals' style of law enforcement, centred around a team of "superheroes". Since Vandal criminals have proven adept at evading "regular" police work though their creative and unorthodox practices, the Vandals counter this with individuals- the superheroes- who are similarly unorthodox and possess a similarly high intellect. Thus, the Vandals- on both sides of the law- have produced their fair share of legendary figures. 15) Also among the rogue states of Vicendum are Bolivia, Arlynal, Arles Serbia, Finland and Korval. 16) Australia, Russia, Ukraine and Ireland are "broken" states that, while the Treaty of Buffalo recognizes them as "whole" countries where both have recognizable Chancellors in charge, effectively they are divided into several smaller "mini"-states that are operated by warring factions, some of which are supported by either Rome or Virtue. The Chancellors of Ukraine and Ireland have opted to join Virtue which allows Virtue to operate in some capacity in those countries, but the designation has very little practical value. 17) Vicendum is home to two ethnic groups- Emel and Vivar- who are considered stateless. Both are worldwide in their dispersal, though the Emeldic are centred around North America and the Vivarians are centred around Europe. Both claim descent from prehistoric groups- the Emeldic from pre-10th century North America and Vivar from the Neanderthals- and thus both claim the continents they inhabit was "stolen" from them by the peoples who later came to occupy it. Both have vibrant activist communities, and both are known for their extreme displays of civil disobedience and violence, as neither believe they are subject to the laws of their "occupiers". 18) The United States dollar is used as the standard of measure against which other currencies on Vicendum are compared to. This is because the currency became the most traded currency worldwide at the height of American power during the latter half of the 20th century, and the currency gained favour among economists since it represented a "neutral" currency that would allow traders to continue doing business when transferring money between nations that are bitter rivals. There are several other differences in this world- mostly from changes to "real life" history- but they're not important at this stage. They will be revealed as this Wiki expands and as the story develops. The important thing to remember, while reading the stories, is that unless it's otherwise noted, assume the world operates as you know it. See also *Character Sheet *A Note on Alternative History Category:Backgrounders